Google Ads
Login | Sign Up

Judgment at Nuremberg Overview:

Judgment at Nuremberg (1961) was a Drama - Historical Film directed by Stanley Kramer and produced by Stanley Kramer and Philip Langner.

SYNOPSIS

This rare drama of ideas is one of the most thought-provoking of Hollywood's many considerations of WWII, and one of the most acclaimed. American jurist Tracy presides as Chief Justice over the Nuremberg tribunal that judges responsibility for war crimes. He balances the emotional testimony of Holocaust victims with the defense of individuals having no personal responsibility for institutional madness (Schell is magnificent as the German defense counsel) as well as the political pressures brought to bear outside his courtroom. A stellar cast working at the top of their form for Kramer, who earlier showed his ability with courtroom drama as director of Inherit the Wind (1960). Based on a Playhouse 90 broadcast.

(Source: available at Amazon AMC Classic Movie Companion).

Judgment at Nuremberg was inducted into the National Film Registry in 2013.

Academy Awards 1961 --- Ceremony Number 34 (source: AMPAS)

AwardRecipientResult
Best ActorMaximilian SchellWon
Best ActorSpencer TracyNominated
Best Supporting ActorMontgomery CliftNominated
Best Supporting ActressJudy GarlandNominated
Best Art DirectionArt Direction: Rudolph Sternad; Set Decoration: George MiloNominated
Best CinematographyErnest LaszloNominated
Best Costume DesignJean LouisNominated
Best DirectorStanley KramerNominated
Best Film EditingFrederic KnudtsonNominated
Best PictureStanley Kramer, ProducerNominated
Best WritingAbby MannWon
See More Oscar Winners

Judgment at Nuremberg BlogHub Articles:

Judgment at Nuremberg (1963)

on Jan 14, 2015 From Journeys in Classic Film

There are certain real-world events Hollywood is quick to capitalize on and others they take their time with (the Vietnam War in the ’70s-’80s). Judgment at Nuremberg is a landmark film for its honest, no-holds barred discussion of the Holocaust where, after the dust had settled, the US ... Read full article

Judgment at Nuremberg (1961)

By 4 Star Film Fan on Jul 23, 2013 From 4 Star Films

This epic court drama relates the true story of the War Crime Trials after World War II. With Stanley Kramer directing, this cast is amazing. Spencer Tracy, Burt Lancaster, Richard Widmark, Marlene Dietrich, Montgomery Clift, Judy Garland, Werner Klemperer, and even William Shatner all play a part. ... Read full article

Judgment at Nuremberg (1961)

By 4 Star Film Fan on Jul 23, 2013 From 4 Star Films

This epic court drama relates the true story of the War Crime Trials after World War II. With Stanley Kramer directing, this cast is amazing. Spencer Tracy, Burt Lancaster, Richard Widmark, Marlene Dietrich, Montgomery Clift, Judy Garland, Werner Klemperer, and even William Shatner all play a part. ... Read full article

Judgment at Nuremberg (1)

By RBuccicone on Mar 23, 2012 From MacGuffin Movies

Judgment at Nuremberg (1961) A reporter character in Judgement at Nuremberg says he could not give away a story about the Nuremberg Nazi war crime trials in 1948 because America had moved on from the war and was no longer interested. If Americans were not interested in the trials then, they certainl... Read full article

Judgment at Nuremberg (2)

By Alyson on Mar 14, 2010 From The Best Picture Project

Three years after WWII, an American court put four Nazi judges on trial for their war crimes under the Third Reich.  Through eight months in a small courtroom, the decision became more than a judgment on right and wrong, but a moral authority for the entire world. The bulk of the film is set within... Read full article

See More Judgment at Nuremberg Articles

Judgment at Nuremberg Quotes:

Col. Tad Lawson: One thing about Americans, we're not cut out to be occupiers. We're new at it and not very good at it.
Mrs. Bertholt: We must forget if we want to go on living.
See More Quotes from Judgment at Nuremberg
Judgment at Nuremberg Facts
Spencer Tracy's 11 minute closing speech was filmed in one take.
Marlon Brando wanted to play the role of Hans Rolfe, the German lawyer who defends the German judges. Brando, in a rare attempt to garner the part, actually approached Stanley Kramer about it. Although, Kramer and Abby Mann were very intrigued with the idea of having an actor of Brando's talent and stature in the role, both were so impressed with Maximilian Schell's portrayal of the same part in the original Playhouse 90 TV broadcast of "Judgment at Nurmemberg", that they had decided to stick with the relatively unknown Schell, who later won the Oscar for Best Actor for that role.
Filmed in Nuremberg itself.
Montgomery Clift had a habit of cutting his hair very short when he was between films and would not work until it had grown back. In fact, his scene in this film was shot right after getting one of those haircuts. He also had so much trouble remembering his lines, the scene had to be re-shot many times. Director Stanley Kramer finally gave up and told Clift to ad lib his lines, saying that this would help to convey the confusion in his character's mind while he was being questioned on the witness stand. "Monty seemed to calm down after this," Kramer later recalled. "He wasn't always close to the script, but whatever he said fitted in perfectly, and he came through with as good a performance as I had hoped."
Abby Mann, who wrote the screenplay, died just one day after Richard Widmark, one of the movie's stars. (25 March 2008).
See More Facts about Judgment at Nuremberg >>